Shah Rukh Khan: Why the actor's charm has endured the test of time
Shah Rukh Khan: Why the actor's charm has endured the test of time Last month, Indian actor Shah Rukh Khan celebrated 30 years in Hindi cinema. Shrayana Bhattacharya, who has written a book on the Bollywood actor's enduring popularity, explains why he is still among the world's biggest film icons. It is probably facile to offer intellectual reasons to explain Khan's longevity in the film industry. Millions of people unambiguously love the actor to the point that public adulation for him is often dismissed as cringeworthy celebrity worship. But why is Khan worshipped and loved so much? Much like his films, the answer is romantic and sentimental: Khan has always expressed and represented the best that India and the South Asian subcontinent can be. He shows us a glimpse of a prosperous, plural and humane region - one that can laugh at itself without the inflamed nostrils of pious outrage. For millions of Indians, he also remains the posterchild of the country's story...